Critics say it would cost too much and no one would come. CBC defends its $13 million culinary school

Columbia Basin College is fleshing out details for its proposed $13 million Kennewick culinary center as it works to win over skeptics who worry it is too large and would have a hard time recruiting students.
Courtesy Columbia Basin College

Kennewick, WA

Columbia Basin College hopes to build a culinary program even its harshest critics will love.

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After meeting with industry leaders in October to hash out a vision for the proposed school, CBC President Rebekah Woods told the Herald she’s taking steps to ensure the school is needed, financially viable and a credit to the community.

Bart Fawbush, owner of Bartholomew Winery, moves wine barrels into the Columbia Gardens Wine and Artisan Village in Kennewick. Columbia Basin College is working to flesh out plans for a culinary school at the Port of Kennewick redevelopment site.

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CBC will creating a standing advisory committee, recruit volunteers to develop a sustainable business plan and recruit a culinary educator to provide it with the in-house expertise it needs to extend its mission to food.

Woods hasn’t decided if CBC will hire a staff member or a consultant. She expects to make a decision in one to two months.

CBC, the Port of Kennewick and the city of Kennewick made a big splash in 2016 when they announced a joint venture to create a culinary school at the port’s Columbia Gardens Urban Wine & Artisan Village project.

Successful programs tend to be associated with community colleges, which charge far less in tuition. Walla Walla Community College’s Wine Country Culinary Institute is a handy local example and CBC partner.

Despite the skeptic’s misgivings, those who gathered in October support a culinary arts center it helps the Mid-Columbia develop a food scene to match its wine one.

Locals wait in line to enter Monarcha Winery for a tour and wine sample after the Port of Kennewick held its ribbon cutting for the Columbia Gardens Urban Wine & Artisan Village in February 2018.
Noelle Haro-Gomez
Tri-City Herald

Supporters want a school that promotes entrepreneurship as well.

Woods said there is support for training future restaurateurs in the fine art of writing business plans, budgeting and creating financially sustainable businesses.

Finding the money to build a $13 million project remains a chief obstacle.

Of the 88 people who participated in the feasibility study, 33 indicated they would collectively be willing to contribute about $1 million to get the program started.

A full-fledged capital campaign is unlikely to raise more than $3 million, meaning CBC will have to turn to partners, grants and the state for funding.

Woods has no firm deadline to end or start the culinary school. But she notes the process has built-in checks.

The state higher education coordinating board must approve new programs. So to does CBC’s accrediting agency, the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.

It would also seek approval from the American Culinary Federation, the accrediting agency for culinary programs.

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